NEW DELHI: Have Shashi Tharoor and the Congress finally found a middle ground? The Congress MP from Kerala, whose many statements in the last one year have been at complete variance with the party's official position, had recently claimed "all is good" and "we are all on the same page" after a truce meeting with Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi.A day later, Tharoor junked reports about leaving the Congress and said he will campaign for the victory of UDF in Kerala. "I can say that I am going to be in the Congress and that I am not going anywhere. I will be part of the poll campaign (in Kerala) and will work for the victory of the UDF," the Thiruvananthapuram MP said.
The Kerala Congress also reciprocated. Leader of the party in state assembly VD Satheesan announced that “Shashi Tharoor will be at the forefront of the UDF campaign for the elections in Kerala.
He will be more active in Kerala for the elections. We are trying to take him to all 140 constituencies in the state."
Tharoor also had some good words to say about Rahul. Interacting with reporters, Tharoor said that everyone likes Rahul as he constantly speaks against the politics of communalism, hatred and divisiveness in the country. "I do not have a different opinion on that," the Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram said.
The Congress leader also said that he had never agreed with any wrong comment against Rahul, saying "he is a sincere leader".Now, if we remember what he had said for PM Modi: "Prime Minister Narendra Modi's energy, dynamism and willingness to engage remains a prime asset for India on the global stage, but deserves greater backing," his praise for Rahul was perhaps measured.Nevertheless, so far so good.
The truce is definitely a significant step forward as it is mutually beneficial.
The Congress, which is desperate to wrest power from the ruling Left Democratic Front after 10 years, would not want to let internal divisions impact its electoral prospects. On the other hand, Tharoor would also not want to be a bystander in the assembly elections just like he was in the Wayanad Lok Sabha bypolls in which he had no role to play.But a pertinent question is: Is this truce permanent? Or has the approaching assembly elections in the state forced both sides to come to a compromise? The divide between Congress and Tharoor, which first appeared on the surface in February last year - when the Thiruvananthapuram MP openly praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's US visit - has deepened since then.
In the last one year, Tharoor took several positions that not just contradicted the Congress’s position, but gave the BJP enough political fodder to attack the grand-old party and the Gandhis, especially Rahul.
Here’s a look at some of those flashpoints which contributed to the bitterness between Tharoor and the Congress:- Praise for PM Modi’s US visit- Praise for PM Modi’s role in Russia-Ukraine war- Praise for Centre’s vaccine export policy during Covid- Observations on Emergency targeting Indira Gandhi and Sanjay Gandhi. - Defence of NDA government on intelligence failure during Pulwama attack- Defence of Centre’s decisions during Operation Sindoor- Joining Centre’s global outreach efforts on Operation Sindoor without party’s approval- Remarks on dynasty politics- Praise of PM Modi as “prime asset of India on global stage”Tharoor on his part has clearly stated that he stands by some of his remarks which were made in national interest even if it contradicted the party stand.
The Congress MP has also claimed that his stand on certain issues may have been seen as pro-BJP by the media, but he has only seen it as pro-government or pro-India.Tharoor reiterated that he has made it clear in the past as well that on some international matters, he does not like to talk about politics and instead prefers to speak about the country. "It is not something new, I have always said so," the Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram told reporters when pressed for his reaction after his meeting with the party top leadership.
Tharoor has also claimed that some of what was reported about his differences with the party were exaggerated."Many of the reports were considerably exaggerated, but whatever it was, the issues have been thoroughly discussed in a very amicable atmosphere with both the Congress president and the LoP. As I said yesterday, we are all on the same page. There's nothing more to say. All is good. We are moving forward. Tharoor’s closed door meeting with Kharge and Rahul, the details of which have not been officially made public, has indeed raised hopes of the beginning of “achhe din” for them. But the real test of this truce may be the upcoming assembly elections in Kerala where a lot of real politics and power politics will be at play on the ground.
